The Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova is hopeful of being fit to defend her Australian Open title despite withdrawing from an exhibition event in Hong Kong next week.
21-year-old Sharapova has pulled out of the JB Group Classic as she continues to recover from right shoulder surgery.
The world number nine says she's not ready to play top-class competition in Hong Kong.
The Australian Open, the first Grand Slam of the season, starts in Melbourne in 2 and a half weeks.
Sharapova, who missed the Beijing Olympics and the US Open because of her shoulder injury, says it wsa a difficult decision to pull out of the Hong Kong event, but she only started practising 16 days ago.
